Following the report of Waitrose becoming the first supermarket in the UK to stop selling disposable e-cigarettes, there have been new developments in the story.
According to a statement issued by the supermarket, they are taking this action because there are reports indicating that individuals who have never smoked before are driving the growth of the e-cigarette market.
Waitrose has removed an electronic cigarette containing lithium from its shelves.
In a statement released by the supermarket, Charlotte Di Cello, Waitrose's Commercial Director, stated that "as a retailer driven by doing meaningful things, selling disposable e-cigarettes is not favorable for environmental protection and human health, given their impact on the environment and the health of young people.
This is our clear decision not to be the final piece of the puzzle in the disposable electronic cigarette market.
Waitrose has become the first UK supermarket to cease the sale of electronic cigarette products.
No other British grocery stores have announced or implied a ban on selling disposable e-cigarettes.
The UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS) has previously stated that electronic cigarettes and other vaping devices have played an important role in reducing smoking rates across the country.
Last month, the British Bureau of Investigation estimated that in 2021, there were approximately 6.6 million smokers in the UK, accounting for roughly 13.3% of the population, with England representing approximately 13% of that figure.
This is a decrease compared to the 14.0% in the United Kingdom and 13.8% in England in 2020.
A report released by Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) in September of last year found that approximately 8.3% of adults in England, Wales, and Scotland use electronic cigarettes.
This represents an increase from the 1.7% recorded ten years ago.
According to the anti-smoking organization, the number of electronic cigarettes 10 years ago was approximately 800,000. However, it estimates that currently there are 4.3 million people using electronic cigarettes.
Electronic cigarettes were first invented in 2004. They do not burn tobacco, which means that the most harmful aspects of smoking, such as tar and carbon monoxide, are not created.
However, they still contain nicotine, a highly addictive ingredient found in cigarettes, which makes them difficult to quit.
Two-thirds of smokers want to quit smoking, and approximately 45% of smokers attempt to quit each year.
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